


Crash And Burn

by CourageInImmensity



Series: Your Love Is A Song [1]
Category: Glee, Harry Potter - Fandom, My Sister's Keeper - Jodi Picoult, One Tree Hill, Smallville
Genre: Clay Evans - Freeform, Death, F/M, Family, Funeral, Gen, Glee - Freeform, Harry Potter - Freeform, Lily Evans - Freeform, Logan Evans - Freeform, Love, Multi, OTH - Freeform, One Tree Hill - Freeform, Sara Evans - Freeform, jily
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-01
Updated: 2019-09-01
Packaged: 2020-10-04 19:29:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,392
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20476277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CourageInImmensity/pseuds/CourageInImmensity
Summary: Just before Clay Evans was meant to head off to Duke, a freak plane crash kills his father. Forced to leave behind his heart-broken mother and two older sisters who don't get along with each other, welcoming a new chapter of his life suddenly becomes a balancing act with the cloud of grief hanging over his family. He can only hope that his father's twin brother from Lima, Ohio can help ease his mother's pain. Having Sam and his two younger siblings around might turn out to be a blessing for the whole grieving family.





	1. Crash And Burn - Part 1

**Crash And Burn - Part 1**

"Mind you don't break the suitcase, buddy," Ryan Evans called over his shoulder, tapping his way down the remaining steps from the upper floor so quickly that he almost collided with his wife at the bottom. "Hello, beautiful. You are a lovely last sight, I must say."

"Do you really have to go?" asked Marie, looping her arms around his neck. "I'll never get used to the quiet; our baby is rearing to go way too soon."

"You'll have me all to yourself in two weeks, love," Ryan promised, tugging her into a warm hug. "We got through it with Lily and Petunia already, Clay is not a baby anymore."

"I really don't like Mr. Strauss right now," the redhead pouted, referring to the boss of the publishing company her husband worked for. "This better be a damn good book."

"_The Five People You Meet In Heaven_," said Ryan; "it's pretty philosophical for fiction, but I have a good feeling about it. My job is to sell the good, bad and ugly anyway."

"You always do," she said and gave him a slow, lingering kiss. "What's taking Clay so long?"

"He's probably sulking over the model airplane we didn't have time to finish building," Ryan laughed, spinning around reluctantly. "Clay, it's time to go, now!"

"Coming, coming," the eighteen-year-old called, finally thundering down the stairs carrying his father's suitcase. "The incomplete jet looks very sad up there."

"We'll finish it when I get back, I promise. Your old man's gotta have something to look forward to, after all. You're about to fly the nest, and Duke won't leave much time for model airplane building."

"I'm not even going far enough away to need a plane, guys," Clay pointed out. "That ship has sailed with Flo and Tuney. I'll always come back, duh."

"You better," said Marie sternly, but taking in the idolizing grin on her son's face as he looked at his father, a lump rose unbidden to her throat. "I can't believe you're about to head off to college, my baby."

"Now you don't start, Ma." Clay shook his head fondly and bent over her shoulders for a final quick hug. "I'll be back soon; it's just the airport right now."

The exchange had led the trio out to the garage, and Clay eyed the silver 1966 Stingray longingly. Ryan slammed the trunk on his suitcase and then handed the keys to his son. "You up for a spin, buddy? Even half an hour away, you're gonna need a car to come home, you know. It's a pretty good time for my first car to become yours."

"No way!" If his father hadn't been nudging him impatiently into the driver's seat, Marie was pretty sure Clay would have been bouncing up and down in excitement. "Thanks, Dad."

"Be careful," Marie warned him as he stuck the keys in the ignition. She braced her hand on the doorframe and leaned through the open window to kiss her husband. "Have a safe flight, my love."

"I'll call when I get to New York," Ryan told her. "Out of the five people in my heaven, two are right here." When she pulled away he was making a forlorn face, too; "You're right, I really don't like Mr. Strauss right now, either."

"Bye Mom," said Clay, waving impatiently at her. "See you soon." Marie reluctantly backed away and watched her son carefully reverse out of the driveway. Growing up and separation were officially inevitable parts of life, and she was already quite certain she didn't like either one.

"That was really cheesy, Dad," said Clay a little while later when they were well on the way to the airport. "Two of the five people in your heaven, really?"

"You won't think it's cheesy when you find the right person, son, trust me on that. You'll understand one day." In what felt like no time at all they reached the airport. When Clay successfully parked the car, his father patted him on the back. "Well done, buddy. Your mother might not like it, but you really are growing up. You take good care of this baby, alright?"

"I will," Clay promised, following Ryan out of the car and turning to stare at it in awe while his father retrieved his suitcase from the trunk. "I'm sure she'll get over the clinginess once you come home to distract her."

"In that, I've had years of practice, I think you're right," his father agreed. "I'm proud of you, kiddo. Can't wait to finish up that jet before you go."

"Me either," the teenager nodded eagerly. "See you in two weeks, Dad."

He hugged his father fiercely for a moment, but when he stepped back Ryan's bright green eyes were solemn. "Jokes aside, you take of your mother while I'm gone, alright? She may be in denial of the fact, but you're not a baby anymore. I'm counting on you, buddy."

"Yeah, I will," said Clay seriously. "That's why I like Duke, growing up is one thing but I kind of like being close to you guys. Lily and Petunia got pulled abroad by Mom's British roots, not me."

"That's my boy," Ryan beamed, and the sparkle in his eyes reminded Clay vividly of both his older sisters. "See you in two weeks, bud."

Watching his father walk towards the departure terminal, Clay felt a distinct sense of responsibility wash over him. He waited until Ryan was out of sight and then drove home to keep his word and ease his mother's overprotective tension.

In the whirlwind of preparing to depart for college, the next two weeks flew by. By the middle of August, the Batman and Wolverine posters on Clay's bedroom walls were among the few remaining things that still made the room feel like his own. He was smiling up at the model airplane dangling above his bed as he firmly taped yet another cardboard box shut when the sound of glass shattering sent him hurtling down the stairs. "What was that?" he gasped, but pausing at the foot of the stairs, the reason for the shattered mug that left tea soaking into the carpet became abundantly clear.

His mother had been sitting in the rocking chair in the corner with her afternoon tea while he progressed with his college packing. Her dark blue eyes were fixated on the news report on the television, wide and horrified. When the newscaster's words penetrated the shocking sight of his mother's face, Clay suddenly felt so sick he couldn't blame her reaction.

"We have breaking news," said the pretty blonde reporter on the screen, the words on the ticker tape running across the bottom giving it away before she could speak. "American Airlines flight 4735 suffered mysterious engine failure half-way from New York to Raleigh. The number of casualties is as yet unknown, but communication with the flight was lost over a forest area in Richmond, Virginia."

The woman then went on to talk about a fire somewhere, but Clay's gaze snapped desperately to his mother. "Mom?" he said carefully, but she either couldn't or wouldn't speak. "That…that was Dad's flight, wasn't it?" Clay didn't really need to ask the question, because he'd been counting the days to his father's return as much as Marie had. But her tiny, barely perceptible nod still made his insides turn when the television showed a crashing aircraft exploding into flames on the screen a few moments later. "Oh my God," he whispered at the spectacle that made any survivors very unlikely. The crunch of the broken tea mug underfoot forced him back to the present as his mother staggered to her feet and ran to the bathroom in the hallway.

By the time Clay lunged for the remote to turn off the distressing news, Marie was retching violently, and the sound made him inexplicably feel five years old again. Clay should have called the airline, he knew, so that they might cling to one last shred of hope that Ryan had somehow taken a different flight. But propelled by terror and desperation, he found himself dialling his father's younger brother in Lima instead. If this nightmare was real, there was no way he could deal with it without reinforcements.

While Ryan had gone to college and then relocated to Raleigh to become a literary agent, his younger brother Jonathan had stayed on the family's farmland in Ohio. A sensation of panic was just tightening its grip on Clay's pounding heart when his Aunt Tanya answered the phone. "Evans residence, hello?"

"Aunt Tanya, thank God!" Clay knew he sounded more desperate than he had meant to out of sheer relief. "It's Clay. I…um, have you guys seen the news today?"

"What are you talking about, sweetie?" she asked, obviously sensing the urgency in his tone because he heard her shushing his three-year-old twin cousins in the background.

"A plane from New York crashed somewhere in Richmond," he said, even the words spoken out loud not making it seem any more real. "It doesn't look like there are any survivors and…um, my Dad was supposed to be on that plane."

"No," she gasped; "Oh my God!"

"That's what I said," he agreed dully; "Can you…um, can you come down here, please? My Mom is in shock, and I don't know what to do. I'm supposed to be leaving for college in a few weeks, not losing my Dad right now."

"Clay, breathe," she reminded him, obviously having heard the hysterical edge to his voice. "Of course we'll come. Have you spoken to your sisters already?"

"Not yet," he admitted. "How am I supposed to tell them this? This plane crash won't be global news or anything, but it just changed our whole world. I don't know how to do this!"

"We'll be there as soon as we possibly can, honey," Tanya promised, although the normally soothing lilt of her voice did little to calm him down. "I'll tell you what; I'll call the girls, okay? You just take care of your mother right now, and we'll be there soon."

"Are you sure?" he asked, but the relief was palpable at her offer. He vaguely heard his aunt say that she had the situation under control, but then Marie staggered out of the bathroom and left him speechless as he hung up the phone. Her trembling fingers were toying with the diamond heart pendant on the chain Ryan had gifted her on their anniversary a few months ago, and her eyes were bloodshot. "Mom," Clay whispered and swooped towards her as if a magnetic force was driving them together. When she began to shiver in his arms, he shoved the scared five-year-old little boy out of mind. The promise he had made his father two weeks ago had just been enforced in the worst way possible, and he would not break it, now or ever.

**A / N This is the furthest I've ever gone back in my headcanons, pre-Clara even. Clearly, I have a thing for torturing my baby Clay. Enjoy all! xx**


	2. Crash And Burn - Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clay's sisters Lily and Petunia arrive from England for their father's funeral, but the effect of grief creates an even deeper rift between the girls.

**Crash And Burn - Part 2**

The two days after news broke of the life-changing plane crash passed in a blur of keeping the promise to take care of his mother. Marie was in such a state that when Clay sensed the presence hovering over his bed in the early hours of Sunday morning, he wasn't even surprised anymore. "You're turning tables here, Ma," he joked half-heartedly, stifling a yawn as he sat up. "Good thing you didn't trip over one of the boxes." She couldn't do more than give him that terrifying numb stare that had been on her face for the better part of two days. "Can't sleep again?"

"I'm sorry," she sighed; "the bed…it's too big for me now. And when I do close my eyes, I just see that explosion, over and over."

"Don't be sorry," he said softly, pulling her down to sit beside him on the edge of his bed. "I see it too." His arms circled around her and squeezed hard. "Everyone will be here tomorrow, Lily and Tuney and Uncle Jon's whole family. Granny and Pops will need you to be well-rested, right? I can't think of anything worse than outliving your kid."

"It feels impossible," she said quaveringly. "I should be tougher than this, but I just don't know how."

"How can anyone be tough right now?" he interrupted. "This is Dad we're talking about; nothing is ever going to be the same from now on." Her hands were freezing when he gave her fingers a reassuring squeeze, and Clay wondered in his half-asleep state if that was because her heart was keeping all the blood to itself, pumping with sheer undying and devastating love. "Hey, we're gonna be okay, I promise."

"You're more like him than you know, sweetheart." The grief in her eyes contradicted the tender sincerity, and when Marie touched his cheek, Clay just leaned into the contact and tried not to see the pain all over her face. "Thank you for being so brave."

"I'm not that brave," he whispered, the words getting stuck behind a painful lump in his throat. "I just made a promise. I love you, Mom."

"I love you too, my darling. Even now when thinking and feeling anything hurts, I am so proud of you. Duke is going to be so very fortunate in a few weeks."

"Maybe," Clay mumbled dubiously, too exhausted to even think about leaving home right then. "How about we both crash in your bed? Screw growing up, nightmares love company."

"That is a wonderful idea," she said fervently and pulled him to his feet. Together they picked their way around the precariously piled packing cases and moved across the hall to the master bedroom. The sheets still smelled like his father, and at the strong surge of emotions, Clay almost regretted his suggestion. But then Marie gave his hand a grateful squeeze, and when she never let go he knew why he had done it, all part of the promise kept.

The next day, Petunia caught the same taxi from the airport as her twin sister Lily. She nabbed the front seat but spent the entire ride to their childhood home glowering through the rear-view mirror at the redhead dozing on James' shoulder in the backseat. Despite the tragic circumstances bringing them home, the green-eyed blonde had room in her gut for burning jealousy of her sister's life. Her eyes darted to the dark-haired toddler perched on James' lap tugging happily on his fingers. "Ma," the one-year-old babbled, poking Lily before he could stop her.

"Lulu, no!" James hissed, but it was too late. "Sorry love," he grimaced when Lily jerked awake; "this one obviously loves your hair as much as I do."

"Looks like it," his wife agreed, unable to smile like she normally would have when her little girl playfully grabbed a fistful of her glossy red hair. "Not much further now, lovey," she soothed and lifted the cooing toddler back onto her lap. "Not much further at all."

"Keep that scowl up, and it'll become permanent, Petunia," James pointed out, catching the blonde glaring at them. "What's your problem?"

"You mean besides the fact that my father is dead, Potter?" she challenged. "You two make me sick."

"Shut up, Tuney," Lily snapped, tightening her grip on Louisa when the baby whimpered at her raised voice. "We're almost home, the last thing Mom needs right now is us chewing each other's heads off."

"That's easy for you to say, Lils," her sister retorted. "You were always his golden girl and Clay could do no wrong. Where does that leave me now that he's gone, huh?"

"Petunia," Lily sighed, but at that most unfortunate moment, the taxi reached their house. Petunia paid the driver without another word and stormed out of the car. Lily turned to James with tears in her eyes; "What are we going to do about her?" she said sadly, but her husband just nodded at the house.

"She'll come around, babe. Right now I think Clay and your Mum need you more. Come on; I've never heard of a baby not bringing a little joy into the house. Lou is our secret weapon, right?"

"You're right," she said and pressed close to him as they stepped out onto the lawn. "Let's do this before I lose my nerve."

"Nonsense, you're one of the bravest people I know," he said and took the baby from her with an encouraging smile as the front door banged open.

"Flo, thank God!" Lily barely had time to register the strangled cry before she was engulfed in a bone-crushing hug. "It's so good to see you."

"Hi, ducky," she said softly, instinctively stroking her brother's hair while he clung to her like a lifeline in the storm their lives had become overnight. "How are you doing?" While Clay pondered the loaded question, she glanced warily in the direction of the staircase. "Where's Mom?"

"Finally getting some sleep," he said, and when he stepped back, she realized with a sinking feeling in her stomach how exhausted he looked. "It's been a rough two days. I-I'm sorry I made Aunt Tanya call you, but I didn't know how to…this, I mean…it's Dad."

"Clay, breathe," she reminded him sharply, and her little brother closed his eyes and leaned in for an even longer hug. "I'm here now; we'll get through this. Is Uncle Jon bringing everyone down too?"

"Should be on the way," said Clay softly, feeling his self-control slip further away, the longer she held onto him. "Mom's had nightmares of the plane exploding for two days. It was so scary."

"I can only imagine, sweetie. It was bad enough hearing it second-hand from Aunt Tanya. Are Granny and Pops coming too?"

"Yeah, of course, they are. They've been in touch with Aunt Tanya and Uncle Jon, even though they're much closer to us. Mom hasn't really been up for talking lately." Finally, he glanced over her shoulder into the yard, where James was bouncing Louisa up and down to distract her from the heavy sadness inside the house. "You certainly got the whole crew along; Lulu is getting so big. Where's Tuney?"

"I…I don't know," Lily stammered; "she threw a really weird fit on the cab ride down here, something about how we were more important to Dad than she was. I was too tired to make sense of it. Hopefully, she'll turn up eventually."

"That's strange," Clay frowned, but he didn't exactly have the energy to make sense of it either. "Hope she gets over it soon, Mom needs all of us right now."

"Yeah, she does," Lily agreed, but the deep anguish in his eyes worried her more than Petunia's attitude at the moment. "What are you thinking? That face worries me more than Petunia's drama right now to be honest."

"I can't help my face, Flo," he muttered half-heartedly, but for once he knew she wasn't just teasing him. "How am I supposed to leave Mom alone in two weeks?" he said desperately. "Did you hear I got in to Duke? I just…I can't imagine leaving now. Dad made me promise to take care of her…it was the last thing he said to me. How can I leave now? Just answer me that."

"Clay, that's amazing." If they hadn't both been so exhausted and emotionally wrecked, he could tell she would have been beaming. "Going ahead and making her proud is the best thing you could possibly do right now, for the whole family."

"No pressure," he said with a strained grimace, but Lily just gave him another tight hug.

"It's the good news we could all really use right now, trust me. Nothing will make her…or Dad prouder than watching you soar."

Clay stiffened in her embrace at the sheer pride in her voice. "I can't believe this is really happening," he choked and just like that the mask his mother had called so brave slipped and his sister's arms were the safe haven he never wanted to leave.

**A / N Another dose of my baby and teenage angst, enjoy all! xx**


End file.
